Applejack’s Release

 

I’m Crimson Brew, earth pony, dark coat, gold mane, running this joint with a sharp eye and sharper tongue. Humans brought their tricks, like this collar I wear—enchanted gems letting me float bottles like a unicorn, no burnout. Takes a pony pal a day to charge it for three days’ use. Humans, always turning gripes into gold. Tonight, the place hums—cider, laughter, that human tang of sweat and hustle. Then she walks in: Applejack, Ponyville’s toughest mare, eyes heavy with something deeper than a long day.

 

I’m Applejack, and I don’t bend easy. After Ma and Pa passed, I held Sweet Apple Acres together—raised Apple Bloom, backed Big Mac, kept the farm alive. I’m the rock everypony leans on, but rocks crack. Years of haulin’ barrels, makin’ choices, smilin’ through it all… it’s worn me down. I’m tired of bein’ strong, of carryin’ the weight of my family’s name. My friends move on—Twilight’s a princess, Rarity’s got her loves—and I’m still here, givin’ my best years to the orchard. I wanted… no, I *needed* to feel safe, to let someone else take the reins.

 

I’d been to The Portal before, roped in by Pinkie for a laugh. It was loud, strange, but nobody expected me to be “Applejack, the tough mare.” So one night, I tipped my hat, ignored Granny’s raised brow, and went. Just me and a cider. Didn’t expect him.

 

Anon. Tall, hands calloused like mine, with a grin that cut through my walls. “Long day at the farm?” he asked, sittin’ across from me. We talked—apples, his world, the weight of duty. He didn’t see me as the rock. He saw me.

 

He joined the farm, not just as a worker but as… more. He started makin’ choices—when to harvest, what to plant. I let him. I *wanted* him to. He brought ideas: miniature apple pies, no fake stuff, sellin’ like hotcakes at harvest fairs. Sales soared, better than we’d seen in years. Big Mac didn’t take kindly to it, stompin’ in one day, jaw tight. “Who’s this human runnin’ our farm?” he growled. Granny Smith shut him up fast. “You’re an Apple, Macintosh, but you ain’t been here since you got your herd. Don’t come cryin’ now just ‘cause you heard rumors.” He went quiet, and I saw respect in his eyes for Anon.

 

Lettin’ Anon lead changed everything. I obey—not ‘cause I have to, but ‘cause I choose to. Every order, every call he makes, lifts the weight off me. I feel light, free, like I can breathe again. Loved, in a way I never knew I needed. I ain’t weak for it. It’s a relief, a gift, knowin’ he’s got me.

 

At night, away from the farmhouse, we slip to the barn or the orchard. Under the stars, he takes over completely. He’ll tug my ears, tease me, make me feel small—not the mare who holds it all together, but his, cared for, safe. He calls me his, says I don’t need to be strong, not with him. And I believe it. Those moments, when I’m just a mare under his care, his love… they’re everything.

 

Crimson Brew here. Applejack left that night with a smile I ain’t seen on her before. The Portal’s got a knack for showin’ folks what they’re missin’. I saw her eye my collar, floatin’ bottles like it’s nothin’. Might help at the farm, but seems she’s found somethin’ better. Me? I keep pourin’ cider, waitin’ for the next story to walk through my door. Who’s it gonna be?

 

To be continued.